Forget Barkley and Chase — CeeDee Lamb could be the No. 1 fantasy football player of 2025

Yahoo

06-05-2025

(This article was written with the assistance of Castmagic, an AI tool, and reviewed by our editorial team to ensure accuracy. Please reach out to us if you notice any mistakes.)
When building a dominant fantasy football roster, nailing your first-round pick is essential — and, according to the recent debate between Matt Harmon and Dalton Del Don on the Yahoo Fantasy Forecast, nobody is better set up to explode as the top overall player than Dallas Cowboys receiver, CeeDee Lamb.
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Let's break down exactly what sets up Lamb for a fantasy football takeover this season.
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Dalton Del Don put it simply: Lamb had "135 catches, 1,750 yards and 12 TDs' in 2023. That's already elite territory. But take a look at what's happened in Dallas since then. The entire Cowboys receiver room behind Lamb is a collection of question marks. DDD lists the names: Jalen Tolbert, Jonathan Mingo, Jalen Brooks, KaVontae Turpin, Ryan Flournoy. It's honestly hard to imagine a bigger gulf between a WR1 and the rest of a depth chart in the NFL right now.
That leads to possibly historic target volume. DDD even says, 'I think he could approach 200 targets this season.' For context, any WR pushing near 200 looks is an automatic top-three option — think peak Davante Adams — especially when you have Lamb's elite mix of route-running and separation skills.
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Lamb doesn't just project to earn targets; he cashes them in. Harmon points out that, with no other true alpha options and quarterback Dak Prescott throwing his way, the Cowboys have every incentive to funnel the offense through Lamb: 'This is the type of situation too where it's like, who else are they going to throw to? ... why would they throw to other guys when they have CD Lamb there?'
It's not just about opportunity. Over the last couple of years, Lamb has already proven he's one of the top playmakers in the league. As DDD notes, 'CeeDee Lamb has the most PPR points per game among all wide receivers since 2003', even while playing through quarterback injuries at times. Last year, he was the focal point, and this offseason only made the picture clearer.
Usually, you can nitpick a No. 1 receiver's situation — maybe there's a new star rookie added, or a veteran threatening to siphon targets, or a running game strong enough to limit volume overhead. That's not the case here. Harmon and Del Don both repeatedly stress just how much this offense is set up to lean completely on Lamb:
No WRs drafted this season
Other pass-catchers on the roster are purely dart throws
Even if someone like Amari Cooper is theoretically added, Lamb would still 'comfortably clear like 160 targets.'
Fantasy drafters have spent all offseason lining up Justin Jefferson or Ja'Marr Chase as their unquestioned No. 1 WR picks. Dalton Del Don? He's 'closer to moving [Lamb] to my WR1 than I am No. 3.'
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Why? The Jefferson–Lamb debate is especially interesting this year. While both are awesome, Jefferson is breaking in a new rookie quarterback (J.J. McCarthy). As Harmon puts it: 'We've just never seen him play yet. It's a new variable there.' Lamb, meanwhile, has his proven chemistry with Dak, and the Cowboys offense isn't changing.
Lamb is 'half a year older than Chase,' meaning he's still in his absolute physical prime. Whether you play full-PPR or half-PPR, both Harmon and Del Don agree — no receiver in football projects for a better combo of safe, elite target share and monster upside.
In short? CeeDee Lamb fits the exact mold of a league-winning fantasy WR1: he's an elite player, at his peak age, with huge target share, in a pass-happy offense and zero real competition for touches.